To Accept or Deflect? Examining the Social Consequences of Compliment Responses

Abstract: Compliments can benefit recipients, givers, and their relationships, but responding to compliments can pose an uncomfortable dilemma: either accept the praise and risk appearing boastful, or deflect it and risk appearing disagreeable. Across four preregistered studies (N = 2,060 adults online and in the lab), we find deflecting (versus accepting) praise generally leads to negative social consequences. Specifically, participants viewed recipients who deflected (versus accepted) more negatively when recalling instances when they gave compliments (Study 1) and when considering various scenarios of compliment interactions (Studies 2-3). While deflecting sometimes enhanced perceived humility, deflections consistently reduced perceived warmth, competence, likability, and relational closeness (Studies 1-4). Behaviorally, participants were less likely to collaborate with a partner who deflected (versus accepted) their praise (Study 4). These findings underscore the potential social drawbacks of deflecting compliments and generate several avenues for future research.

Keywords: impression management; compliments, praise, warmth, competence